Thomas a



(No Model.)

T. A. DAVIES.

RAILROAD SPIKE.

No. 3 2,252, Patented May 3, 1887 CZWIFNESSESW v e/fllNgfiN j 66 4% I.A/ BY ATTORNEYS.

UNITED STATES PATENT QEEICE.

THOMAS A. DAVIES, OF NEV YORK, N. Y.

RAILROAD-SIPIKE.

QPECIPICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 362,252 dated May 3,1887.

Application filed February 23, 1887. Serial No. 228,551. (No model.)

ments in the construction of railroad-rail spikes covered by LettersPatent No. 330,570, granted to me November 17, 1885; and my presentinvention consists in a railroad-rail spike having the under surface ofits head formed with two flat faces, adapting the spike.

to have a broad bearing upon the base of the rail, whether the spike bedriven vertically or at an inclination in the cross tie, and alsoadapting the spike to be drawn out from the crosstie without bending thespike.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar letters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation ofa part of a railway cross-tie and apart of the flange of a railroad-rail having one of my improved spikesapplied thereto, the spike being driven vertically in the cross-tie, andillustrating, also, in dotted lines the application ofa crowbar to thespike for drawing the same. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the spikedriven at an angle in the cross-tie. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sideelevation of the upper part of the spike, showing the flange of'arailway-rail in dotted lines, and Figs. 4 and 5 are respectively frontand rear elevations of the upper part of the spike.

A represents the body of a spike, the lower end of which is sharpened tofacilitate driving in the ordinary manner.

B is the spike-head formed upon its under surface with two flat faces, aa, slightly inclined upward from the body A, to suit the slant of theupper surface of the base or flange O of a railway-rail. The flat faceain its trans.

verse plane is at right angle to the length of 5 the body A, so that itwill rest squarely upon the flange G of the railway rail when the spikeis driven vertically into the cross-tie D, as shown in Fig. 1. The flatface a is formed at an obtuse angle with the fiat face a, so that itwill rest squarely upon the flange 0 when the spike is driven at anangle into the cross-tie, as illustrated clearly in Fig. 2. In thismanner the spike-head always presents a broad flat surface to the flangeof the rail, and when the spike is driven home this flat surfaceprevents all dangcr of deflection of the upper end of the spike, whichoccurs to a greater or less extent when the lower surface of thespikehead is rounded. also facilitate the drawing of the spike from thecross-tie, as an angular space is left at the sides of the spikeheadbetween the flat surfaces and the rail-flange, into which the point of acrow-bar may be placed, and the spike lifted by force applied by the bardirectly in line with the length of the spike, so that danger ofdeflecting and bending the body of the spike is almost altogetherobviated.

Having thus described my invention,whatI claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

A railroad-rail spike made, substantially as herein shown and described,with the lower part of its head formed with flat surfaces to a at anangle to each other, as and for the purposes set forth.

THQMAS A. DAVIES..

Witnesses:

H. A. WEsT, C. SEDewIcK.

The two flat surfaces a a 60

